Readers' response to 16 ways to cut 16 per cent of carbon emissions

Your Insights, Straits Times 23 Jan 10;

More than 20 readers responded to last week's Insight feature on 16 ways to cut 16 per cent of carbon emissions. Many offered tips on how to lead a low-carbon lifestyle, while others made suggestions on how public amenities could be more carbon-efficient. Here are some ideas and views:

'THE multi-storey HDB carparks must be among the most polluted places. Some vehicles have their engines running, and their air-conditioning on, with their occupants taking a nap inside or missing, presumably running errands or having a meal. The worse culprits are taxis and delivery vans. I have never seen the police booking a motorist for air pollution. I can understand that vehicles delivering frozen food like ice cream and tourist buses need to keep their vehicles cool. But other vehicles that are not on the road should switch off their engines. Can our lawmen be more vigilant in policing this?'

LAURENCE LEONG via e-mail

'ONE way to cut the carbon footprint of this country is for the Government to stop encouraging the scrapping of cars unnecessarily. Do you know how much carbon emission is created to manufacture one car?'

LEON YUEN via e-mail

'USING a dishwasher may save up to 40 per cent more water than washing dishes by hand. But the cost of electricity in operating the washer far exceeds the cost savings in water usage.'

LEE HWEE HOON via SMS

'AIR-CONDITIONING large bus interchanges will lead to huge carbon emissions. The average traveller in transit typically spends less than 20 minutes waiting for the bus. So it doesn't make sense to air-condition the entire interchange.'

CHARLES TAN via SMS

'TO REDUCE carbon emissions on the roads, please ask the public bus companies to increase the air-conditioning temperatures in their buses. Hospital wards should switch off their air-conditioning during the night. Use ceiling fans and open the windows for fresh air. This saves electricity and reduces transmission of airborne viruses.'

ALLEN KOH via SMS

'HERE are my tips:

a) Reuse old clothes as rags, or donate them to charity.

b) Besides Bring Your Own Bag Day, restaurants and food vendors can have a Bring Your Own Tupperware Day for customers who wish to purchase takeaway food. Or better still, eco-conscious customers can do so on any day.

c) Newspapers can include a daily 'green column' with various tips on how to reduce, reuse and recycle.

d) Reduce the number of vending machines that consume so much electricity 24/7 as there are so many neighbourhood shops and shopping centres.'

NORMARLINA MD TAIB via e-mail

'MEATLESS Mondays, or any other day of the week, are a tasty way to fight climate change. The Vegetarian Society of Singapore's website has a list of more than 400 vegetarian eateries. Both supermarkets and wet markets sell so many vegetarian ingredients. I paid to plant a tree in Pasir Ris last year. This year, I'm trying to do less flying.'

GEORGE JACOBS via e-mail

'THE Meat-Free on Monday petition has more than 300 signatories, of which many are foreigners. We have our own Facebook group 'Meat Out For 1 Day A Week Singapore' which has 961 members, of which most are Singaporeans. In this Facebook group, we encourage members to exclude meat from their diet at least once a week at their convenience.'

EDMOND CHUA via e-mail